News and Perspectives from Pacific Gas and Electric Company

Several stories on the science and politics of global warming caught our attention this week:

Popular music magazine Rolling Stone released a list of what it calls the “planet’s worst enemies.” The magazines editors have been quoted as saying they want to recognize and stand behind the scientific consensus and report on global warming honestly and incisively. The list calls out 18 prominent figures and details why the magazine feels they are detrimental to the fight against global warming.

Researchers from Michigan State University are hoping the fruits of their labor will lead to new fruits in the field and ultimately feed people in east African nations hit hard by global warming. The study will utilize a Michigan State supercomputer and resources from the Michigan Agricultural Experiment Station to create a regional climate model that includes crop and water data to develop crop varieties to better withstand climate change. The New York-based Rockefeller Foundation gave a grant of $430,000 grant to Michigan State as part of its $70 million Climate Change Resilience Initiative.

The global economy may be considered flat at best by analysts but one new study shows a sector that is predicted to balloon in 2010. The reports claims considerable attention to global warming coupled with an increasing focus on energy efficiency and cost have laid the groundwork for an emerging carbon management market. The sectors predicted to be affected the most by the pressure to manage their carbon emissions are energy, manufacturing, government and retail.